Flange bending toolhead



y 5, 1 F. F. GEORGE, JR 2,637,292

FLANGE BENDING TOOLHEAD Filed Sept. 5, 1950 I N V EN TOR.

Fred F: GeoryeJr.

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Patented May 5, 1953 'FYUNITEDI STATES PATENT OFFICE FLANGE BENDING TOOLHEAD Fred F. George, J r., North Kansas City, Mo.

This invention relates to workmen's tool heads or adaptors useable particularly in the field of sheet metal construction, the primary object being to provide a simple, inexpensive article of manufacture that will appreciably reduce the time and labor of forming or bending joint flanges.

In the handling of sheet metal and forming of ducts, conduits and the like therefrom, or otherwise joining separate edges, considerable use is made of flanges bent at an angle throughout a considerable length. While bendingjjigs, fixtures, and machines are quite commonly used, forming of flanges at joints requires the time consuming task of hammering the metal to form the sealing flange. Stretching of the metal forces the operator to use of care to prevent buckling, overlapping and wrinkling.

It is the most important object of this invention to present a tool that may be used with pneumatic hammers or the like to rebend the material, thereby tremendously reducing the time consumed and presenting a neat, excellent sea with little operator effort or care.

Other objects relate to the details of construction making possible the above uses, all as will hereinafter be set forth while referring to the drawing, wherein:

Figure l is a perspective view of a tool head made according to my present invention, showing the same in use on a flange type joint.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the joint before flanging.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the joint after completion through use of the tool hereof.

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of the tool showing its manner of use; and

Fig. 5 is an end view of the tool in use as in Fig. 4.

By Way of illustration, the drawing shows one type of flange Ill that may easily and quickly be bent through use of a tool l2. Initially, 'a corner joint It for a pair of angularly disposed panels [6 and I8 of bendable material such as sheet metal, has parts 20 and 22 on the edges of panels l6 and [8 respectively.

The part 22 comprises merely a relatively Barrow strip bent at right angles to panel 16 and extending the entire length of the edge thereof upon which part 20 is formed. Part 22 includes a pair of rebent portions, presenting an offset 24 and a cavity for receiving the part 20 of panel I6. Such rebent portions terminate in flange III that normally extends outwardly beyond panel l6 within the plane of panel l8 as is clear in Fig. 2.

Application September 5,1950, Serial No. 183,253

1 Claim. (01. Ila-54) I Tool 12 for bending flange m or lappingth'e same over panel 16 from the condition shown in Fig. 2 to that of Fig. 3, comprises a pair of plates 25 and 2B, and an elongated stem 3|], all preferably integrally connected as a single unit.

Both plates 26 and 28 are flat and substantially rectangular, although the corners of both may be rounded if desired as shown in the case of plate 26. The innermost merging edges 32 of the plates 26 and 28 should however, be straight.

While flange 1B is bent to a right angle with respect to the plane of panel IS, the inner faces of plates 26 and 28 should be disposed relatively at an obtuse angle, or at least slightly greater than and perhaps not more than Plates 26 and 28 may be formed from an initially flat piece of material and rebent as shown or the entire tool l2, including stem 30, may be cast as a single unit. As shown, stem 30 is welded in place on the outermost corner 34 of plates 26 and 28 and flares outwardly at its inner end 36 in the shape of a cone for rigidity purposes.

The angularity of stem 30 is important, and in this connection, it is noted in Fig. 5 that its longitudinal axis is on a line substantially bisecting the angle defined by the inner faces of plates 26 and 28. However, the angle between stem 30 and the outer face of plate 26 is slightly less that that between stem 30 and plate 28.

It is also notable in Fig. 4 that stem 30 is not perpendicular to edge 34 but is inclined slightly toward one end of the latter.

In use, the tool l2 is reciprocated rapidly by coupling the stem 38 thereof with the usual chuck of a pneumatic hammer or the like, not shown. Plate 26 is initially held against flange H1 at one end thereof, and as driving force is applied to stem 38 in alignment with its longitudinal axis, flange II] will be bent or lapped over panel [6 as shown in Fig. 3 and at one end of Fig. 1.

The operator progresses the tool I2 gradually and uniformly toward the opposite end of the joint l4 while the hammering or battering action continues and holds the tool l2 substantially as shown in Figs. 1, 4, and 5. In order to avoid wrinkles by virtue of the stretching of the material forming flange ID, the trailing edge 36 only of straight line 32 should continuously contact flange l0 to form a straight, right angle corner 38.

As the tool I2 is rocked slightly to alternately move plates 26 and 28 against flange l0 and the proximal portion of joint part 22, the former will gradually be bent from the condition shown in Fig. 2 to that of Fig. 5 and finally to that of Fig. 3. Care must be taken to not bend flange inwardly to less than a right angle where panel l6 will be depressed into joint part 22 and thereby mutilate the latter so as to prevent a tight seal or at least a satisfactory lock in joint l4 between parts 20 and 22. Such careful operation is rendered extremely simple as compared with ordinary hammering of flange ID by virtue of the relative angularity of plates 26 and 28.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

As an article of manufacture, a tool head comprising a pair of plates each having a flat innermost face and a flat outermost face, said plates being integrally interconnected, presenting outermost and an innermost, straight parallel lines of merger between the plates, there being an obtuse line of merger therebetween, said stem being 2 substantially at right angles to the outermost face of one plate and substantially flush with the outermost face of the other plate, there being an acute angle between the longitudinal axis of the stem and said outermost line of merger.

FRED F. GEORGE, JR.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 260,821 Armstrong July 11, 1882 511,764 Eckel Jan. 2, 1894 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 11,610 Great Britain Aug. 8, 1891 of 1891 28,855 Great Britain Dec. 16, 1896 

